Thursday, December 3, 2009

Linzer Cookies (Treats For Co Irkers)

It's probably easy for you to tell that I'm a chocolate and/or peanut butter kind of gal when it comes to my baked goods recipes. Those two ingredients seem to call out to me and I find myself zeroing in on any recipe that includes them either separately or together. Sometimes however, I make myself step outside my comfort zone and recognize that the others I bake for might like to try something different for a change.

That's how I came to choose this linzer cookie recipe for this week's Treats For Co-Irkers. Lest you think I've deviated totally from my chocolate/peanut butter roots however, please note that I did indeed fill some of these cookies with Dark Chocolate Dreams, a chocolate peanut butter that I always have on hand. The other half of these richly flavored almond cookies were filled with raspberry preserves. I think I just may have compromised to the best of my ability.

Because these cookies are put together in pairs, it's important to avoid distortion when transferring the cutouts to the cookie sheets. I was having a terrible time with that part so I decided to roll out the dough between two sheets of parchment paper.

I then cut out the shapes, removed the excess dough from around the cutouts, and simply transferred the parchment paper directly to the cookie sheet. How's that for some ingenuity? This technique wouldn't work for a cutout cookie recipe where there would be much spreading during baking, but that isn't an issue with this particular recipe.

Oh, and for the record, these were supposed to look like snowflakes but if you're looking for a Hanukkah cookie, consider it a Star of David.

Roll the dough 1/8-inch thick. Cut half the dough into shapes with a solid linzer cutter. Cut the other half of the dough with a cutter that has a design cut into the center. Transfer the cookies to an ungreased or parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake in a preheated 375°F oven for 8 to 10 minutes, until lightly browned on the edges. Cool on a rack. Dust the cookies with cutout tops lightly with confectioners’ sugar.

Spread the solid cookies with 1/2 teaspoon of jam or other filling. Place a cutout cookie on top. Let stand for several hours, until the filling is set.

I've decided to enter these cookies in the Twelve Days of Sharing Virtual Cookie Jar. Please take a moment to check out all the wonderful cookie recipes and if you can, make a donation to help end childhood hunger.

18 comments:

We are on a cut-out cookie kick~ Beautiful! Great tip on rolling out the dough between layers of parchment. Haven't tried it with my super soft sugar cookie dough....old habits die hard~ Never heard of almond flour; I'll have to look for it. Same with the Chocolate Dream...is that like Nutella?

good call on the parchment idea!As much as I love PB and chocolate... linzer has to have raspberry jam for me! MMMMMMMMM so good!!!! (although I do admit the PB and chocolate must have tasted amazing!)

I always love how linzer cookies look, but have never actually tried them myself! I am with you on being a chocolate and peanut butter cookie girl... Although I might take your lead and give these a try this year!

You should enter these in the 12 Days of Sharing virtual cookie jar (check out www.injennieskitchen.com for details)

This was my first time making linzer cookies, thanks for the solid recipe :D There's nothing better than trying something new and having it come out beautifully. I was a little worried about the soft dough, but there's a difference between soft and sticky. This dough is not sticky so parchment works well. I also added a little tsp of cream to my batter because I have some around, and well, its not like its going to put the calories over the limit on this one. Yummy scrumboes!

About Me

This is my documentation of my life after turning 50. Lots of recipes, some healthy, some not so much... tossed up with a hefty dose of sarcasm and motherly love.
My email address: maggielauerrdh(at)yahoo.com